


Exile's Song

by enigmaticblue



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-07-07
Updated: 2011-07-07
Packaged: 2017-10-21 03:28:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 811
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/220406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/enigmaticblue/pseuds/enigmaticblue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Teal’c is in exile, make no mistake about it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Exile's Song

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the hc_bingo, prompt “ostracized from society”.

Teal’c keeps reminding himself that he has chosen this new life among the Tau’ri. He left Chulak to become shol’vah, left his position as First Prime with all the honor due him, because he believes in freedom, and that the Tau’ri are the key to freedom for all Jaffa.

 

And Teal’c is used to putting his own needs aside. He has often been gone for long periods of time in service to Apophis, only rarely seeing his wife and son. Teal’c believes that Drey’auc will understand that he acts for her benefit, and for their people.

 

He ignores the small, internal voice that tells him that Drey’auc is unlikely to be so sympathetic to his cause; she had urged him to silence his doubts when Teal’c had first spoken of his concerns, and she still believes that the Goa’uld are gods.

 

Teal’c has seen too much to believe that the Goa’uld are anything more than false gods—parasites feeding off the misery of millions.

 

For the first few months he’s with the Tau’ri, Teal’c finds it possible to forget his ties to Chulak and the life he’s left behind. He is relieved to serve with honorable men and women, and to have orders he can follow with a clear conscience. Those blessings outweigh his losses.

 

But there are times when even the support of his team is not enough to outweigh the sting of exile, and the knowledge that he has no home to return to, that he is alone among the Tau’ri.

 

Although he has pledged his life to the Tau’ri, he still feels alone among them. Most days, he speaks only with the other members of his team, or General Hammond. When he eats in what the Tau’ri call the commissary, he eats alone unless one of his team members is present. When he retires to his room, Teal’c is almost always alone.

 

Teal’c understands why the other soldiers give him a wide berth. He is Jaffa, and one of those they are trained to fight against. And if there is a part of Teal’c that believes that his exile is penance for the crimes he has committed as First Prime of Apophis, he still finds himself longing for pieces of his old life.

 

He misses the foods he ate in the trenches, and the meals that Drey’auc cooked for him when he had gone home. Teal’c misses the familiar scents of incense, aromatic oils, and spices not found on Earth. He misses how the air on Chulak tasted before a storm, and the sharp sound of metal on metal as Apophis’ Jaffa reported. Teal’c has to suppress his uneasiness at wearing cloth and not the chain mail and helmet of the First Prime.

 

But Teal’c can put all that aside, because he knows he is doing the right thing. He can choose to believe that his wife and son are safe and well—right up until the time of Rya’c’s prim’tah. When they go to Chulak, when Teal’c fails to save his son from enslavement to the Goa’uld, the longing rises up to choke him once again.

 

Until the moment Drey’auc tells him to leave, Teal’c had believed that he was just on a longer than usual mission, and that he could go home again. Now, he cannot hide from the truth—this mission might take his lifetime, and he might never be with his people again.

 

But then, Teal’c thinks a few days after their visit to Chulak, as one of the few Jaffa to doubt that the Goa’uld are gods, he has been alone a very long time.

 

The knock on the door startles him, and Teal’c calls out, “Come in,” without thinking.

 

Colonel O’Neill pokes his head inside the room, quickly glancing around, taking in the soft light of the candles. “Hey, I didn’t mean to interrupt your thing.”

 

“I have completed kelnorim,” Teal’c replies.

 

Colonel O’Neill nods. “Perfect. Then you won’t mind coming over to watch some movies at my place. I managed to convince Carter and Daniel to take the evening off, which means you’re the only hold out.”

 

A little of the loneliness eases. “I am not holding anything, Colonel O’Neill,” Teal’c says gravely.

 

There’s a quick flash of an understanding grin, and Colonel O’Neill jerks his head. “Come on, then, T. Time’s a-wasting.” He waits until Teal’c is ready to go before asking, “So, what do you want on your pizza? And please tell me some kind of meat, because Daniel and Carter were saying something about vegetarian, but I think they might have been pulling my leg.”

 

Teal’c gives the question serious consideration. “I believe I prefer pepperoni.”

 

Colonel O’Neill claps him on the shoulder. “ _That_ I can work with.”

 

Teal’c does not allow his amusement to show on his face. “Indeed.”

 

Perhaps he isn’t quite so alone after all.


End file.
